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Why Legionella Management Needs To Be Taken Seriously

Unsure of the importance of carrying out a Legionella risk assessment? Well, it’s actually very important and needs to be a key part of the running of the key operations in to a business as we see it. When it comes to Legionnaires' disease, landlords need to take it seriously as it is in this day and age a legal requirement and responsibility all landlords need to oversee. All reasonable precautions have been taken by the World Health Organization to work out and verify the best steps to take to make sure this is all done in the most compliant as well as correct manner.

The non-pneumonic form (Pontiac disease) is an acute, self-limiting influenza-like illness usually lasting 2–5 days. The incubation period is from a few and up to 48 hours. The main symptoms are fever, chills, headache, malaise and muscle pain (myalgia). No deaths are associated with this type of infection. Legionnaires’ disease, the pneumonic form, has an incubation period of 2 to 10 days (but up to 16 days has been recorded in some outbreaks). Initially, symptoms are fever, loss of appetite, headache, malaise and lethargy. Some patients may also have muscle pain, diarrhoea and confusion. There is also usually an initial mild cough, but as many as 50% of patients can present phlegm.

Business owners, and owners of rental properties, have health and safety obligations they need to meet in order to minimise the risk of Legionella exposure. In more recent times and the future to come, this is more and more likely to become a great deal more important in terms of the degree to which and how this will need to be managed. A risk assessment is very much key to establish what Legionella risks exist within the water system. The risk assessment should be reviewed periodically to ensure it’s still a valid representation of the current level of risk.

Record-keeping is legally required only for a business with five or more employees. However, it’s still a good idea for a business to keep records, even if they have fewer than five employees. When it comes to legionella management this is very much vital as a means of knowing in the future how to fix any likely problems that could otherwise arise. The dates and results of inspections, tests, and checks carried out on the water and water system are all typical aspects which need to be accounted for.